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Best of luck to you Casb37. I lifted you up in prayer, that you get the procedure you need to help restore your body to health. Please let me know how it is going with you.

Hello J, I love the dress and the shoes. You looked great in your new outfit. I have a talented seamstress mom too. Aren't moms great!!

I like the ideas, NancyRN.

My advice to anybody who is just starting out is to keep a notebook and document what you do everyday in it (towards getting this procedure done), ie: date, time, name of person you talked to, what they said, your ideas, phone and fax numbers, addresses, who you requested medical records from, and any other details. Because the insurance battle is very involved and there is no way to remember what all you have done, this is just an idea....to help keep organized and not confused....

Y'all have both done wonderfully at losing. I hope I am as successful. I am much more confident about the lap band choice and patient reviews tell me that Drs. Davis and Davis are a great father-son surgical team. I don't think there will be any regrets going with them. For me the support/psychological and diet help they provide will be a big part of my recovery from morbid obesity. I couldn't get my experience question answered today but I believe Garth Davis has good experience and both have exc. surgical skill and I couldn't ask for a better hospital. Happy today w/ the way things are progressing :clap2: I'm probably looking at about Thanksgiving or Christmas for surgery date. I hope.

Thanks for the encouraging words, Jack and Gayle. I forgot to ask the Dr. how many lap bands he has performed!! I was so busy doing the crawfish out of RNY topics! I will call his office tomorrow and ask. His son is in my insurance network too, I'll ask about his experience too. Gracias, very important question I forgot to ask!!:faint:

I just got back from my first visit with Dr. Davis in Houston. His specialty is general surgery and he kinda pushed the RNY option. I have decided to go with my gut feeling (no pun intended) and do the banding as opposed to the RNY. HE thinks with my age and BMI (49 and 48) bypass would be the more permanent and for sure thing. Are there any 50+ year old bandsters with high BMIs (almost 50) out there and have you lost 100+ lbs? I think I can, I think I can........ ! He stressed the importance of being tested for sleep apnea. Oh bother, I can't stand to think of someone watching me sleep. But apparently it is pretty serious stuff, this sleep apnea. Just a couple more tests and letters and I'll be ready for a surgery date. Support and dietary and psychological help are biggies with the doctors at Methodist Hospital. That is a good thing.

Poodles, That is a good one! I'm driving in to Houston today to see the surgeon!! woo hoo :nervous very nervous....

1-800-grandma

I had been wanting wls for years and first my insurance didn't cover it, then they did but only the RNY. I was way too afraid of the RNY, so I put it off and out of my mind. Then the last week of school there were some parents decorating the gym for a dance. One of my co-workers introduced me to a lady who had had it. She was still heavy, but so enthused about it. I hadn't heard of the "new band" surgery. I did the research and found out how much less drastic it is and decided I had to have it. that was at the end of May. Now, in mid-July I am approved and going in to see the surgeon tomorrow. I dedicated my time off this summer to research and insurance approval and am so glad I did. I am looking forward to this so much. I miss being normal sized!!!! Look out size 12 here I come..... :clap2: :clap2: :clap2: :clap2:

wow what an ordeal. I got my letter today. I has a long disclaimer in it , but I called to clarify and I guess that is about as good as it gets for acceptance letters from BCBS. I know what you mean about it becoming an obsession. It seems I have been working on this day and night all summer!! I don't know how you waited a whole year. I was about to go stir-crazy before I got the call from BCBS and I still may before I get banded.

I'd let the parents know if the students will be having a quiz on Thursdays or vocabulary due on Wednesays, etc. Are you sharing class room rules and consequences? I don't know that I would let the students or the parents know it was my first year in the classroom until the last day of school. A couple of my favorite websites are enchantedlearning.com and edhelper.com.

Hello Marc, I too am a pre-bandster. I traded the bottle for the fork as well and am now mo. What I plan to do about this self-destructive streak is try to get in touch with why I am this way and tackle it. In other words, get some counseling help. We know that coming out of denial and accepting that we have a problem is a big step. hoo-ray for taking that step. Please stay in touch and let me know how you are doing. This is another chance at living a good life and I sure don't want to blow it. At this ripe old age of 49 I don't see lots more opportunities beating down the door. You can do it! and so can I! I am thankful for this chance to get out of this mo body-o-mine. this is going to be a wonderful journey...... I am thinking that things are gonna be great.

They should not put that on a little girl. I think your approach with her is the right one.

Wow Only a week! That is great news. Thanks for the info. Yes I am very excited that I was approved by insurance and can get it done right here in Houston. I was on my way to Monterrey otherwise. I just could not wait a year. I go to see my surgeon on Tues....I hope we can get this done quickly. It would still be nice to get it done before school starts!!

My PCP is very nice and supportive of WLS, his name is Jerry Simmons and he is on Hwy 36 in Needville (south of Richmond-Rosenburg on 59). His number is 979-793-7111. Good luck.

Thank you for the valuable info. I am not yet banded, just got approved by insurance. :clap2: :clap2: :clap2:

Dolphin Dreams, I am starting a new job this year. Now I am approved and am wondering, since I don't have time to get this done and recuperate this summer... how long will I need to take off, in your opinion, from the classroom? I realize this is a guess. I am 49, strong, and have a BMI of 49. I know the surgery is more important than the job, since the job can be replaced. So while I have the approval I want to get it done ASAP. Some doctor's offices give me the impression that I can practically jump off the table and get right back in the swing of things. Thanks for listening.

thank you, Jesus!! I have now been approved by BCBS of TX TRS Activecare. The nice lady who I had been corresponding with at BCBS called yesterday. I have an appt. with the surgeon on the 18th. I feel so lucky. Thank you for listening to me while I waited impatiently for approval.

nancyRN, I am impressed that you kept your cool with that ****head. How infuriating. Way to go!

That is a crazy rule! and a nonsense rule to boot!

Marlluvia, Is TX True Choice part of BCBS of TX? Are you in a big group? If you are in a group, I bet pre-existing conditions will be covered, so fills would be. I'm speculating.

I just got approval from BCBS of TX TRS Activecare. I had given up on them when I got the call that I was approved. What I did was go down their list and fax them everything they wanted on the list. The 12 months of documented medically supervised weight loss was what I could not handle either. So, I took all my medical records and wrote a letter pointing out all my illnessed that are obesity related. Hyperlipidemia, PCOS, back pain, chest pain, fatigue, even on an ultrasound of my ovaries in 2000 the tech noted that the patient was obese, making observation of the ovary difficult. I pointed out that obesity would impede preventive screens of all kinds. Pointed out that the cost of this surgery would be less than impending illnesses caused by obesity.Include in the letter all the diets I have tried in the past two years. My current documented weight at a doctor's visit prove that they failed. Sent all lab results, like complete blood chemistry and any borderline high readings. Find someone specific to fax it to, not one of the phone answerers at BCBS and call and make sure fax is received. They need lots of documentation. They want lots of paper. I think you can get it, you need to dedicate a lot of time to it and pray hard. I don't doubt that divine intervention got me my approval at last, but you gotta inundate them with paper, at least in my opinion...hope that helps you. It worked for me.

I'd like to hear your story too as I am in the process of making up my mind. who did your RNY and why is it better?

I checked and they said it is OK to change to a doctor who is in network, Speigel is not for BCBS, for me just to hand deliver the letter of approval to my new surgeon. All systems are go....... :clap2: